Itachi's clones dissolved into smoke one after another, his breathing growing heavier."Tsk… my chakra is running out too fast…"
The enemy gave no respite, his water clones pressing forward with kunai and precise taijutsu. Fugaku stepped back to his side, blocking with force."Endure, son. Don't give him your back."
Itachi closed his eyes for a moment, recalling secret trainings. His hand reached into the inner pocket of his cloak: a circular seal inscribed on parchment, marked with absorption runes. He pressed it against his skin, and a flash engulfed him.
Chakra flowed into him like a fresh torrent. His Sharingan flared once more."Now…"
The Root ninja noticed."What did you do, brat?"
Itachi didn't answer. He stepped forward, activating the sequence of his invention. Around him, metallic particles he had previously released vibrated, forming a rotating circle. The air filled with static electricity.
In a low voice:"Special Jutsu: Plasma Cannon."
A sphere of fire with a bright beam of compressed energy formed in the air, then shot forth with a deafening roar. The impact struck two of the enemy's clones, disintegrating them into boiling water, and hurled the original several meters back, burning part of his armor.
The jonin grunted in pain, staggering, blood running down his side.
Fugaku seized the distraction, launching himself with fierce taijutsu, his movements full of experience and power. The clash of kunai rang like steel against steel."Itachi, keep the pressure on! Don't let him regain the initiative!"
Itachi nodded, eyes fixed on his target. His seal kept absorbing energy, but he knew it wouldn't last long before draining his reserves. He had to be precise, quick… lethal.
For Fugaku, having already advanced to Mangekyō, this fight could be considered easy. But he had never expected his son to be the one leading the assault. His original plan was to expose him to the harsh reality of the shinobi world—but it seemed the boy was more mature than he thought.
On the riverbank, beneath the moon, father and son fought in unison: Fugaku, with the hardened strength of a leader, and Itachi, with the creativity of a precocious genius, against an enemy who represented the village's dark Root.
The battle was only just beginning to turn truly dangerous.
The enemy jonin panted heavily after the plasma cannon's strike. He clutched his burned chest and laughed darkly."I see I underestimated this pair… I have no choice."
He bit his thumb and drew a seal across his abdomen. The air grew heavy, nearly unbreathable. His skin tightened, veins bulged, and his eyes took on an unnatural red glow.
Fugaku frowned."…That jutsu… what the hell did you do?"
The Root ninja roared like a beast, and in an instant his speed multiplied. The ground cracked beneath his steps. His taijutsu was now devastating, every blow carrying inhuman strength that shook the trees.
Itachi tried intercepting with shuriken and another plasma cannon, but the enemy dodged with feral reflexes."Father… I can't keep up with his speed!"
Fugaku blocked a strike so powerful that the metal of his kunai split in two, yet he countered without losing composure."Calm yourself, Itachi. Focus on observing. We don't need to match his strength—we need to exploit his weakness."
Itachi's Sharingan spun furiously, analyzing every movement. Though his absorption seal was still active, he felt his chakra draining like sand through fingers. Frustration gnawed at him."I'm… a burden…"
The enemy laughed with a hoarse, maddened voice."This power costs me my life… but with it, not even two Uchiha together can stop me!"
Fugaku stepped forward, gaze hard as steel."Your life is worthless if you give it to a man like Danzō."
The clash continued, each strike from the enemy a small earthquake, yet Fugaku held firm—deflecting, containing, retaliating. At his side, Itachi could only manage supporting attacks, feeling ever smaller before the power unleashed by the two combatants.
And yet, inside him, something grew: a precise understanding of how that forbidden jutsu functioned, the cost it demanded, and the tiny openings it left in the user's body.
The battle was not yet decided.
The battlefield had become a wreck: trees shattered, the ground pocked with craters, the air thick with released chakra.
The Root jonin gasped like a dying beast. His black hair turned white strand by strand, his skin cracked with each movement as though the jutsu were devouring his years.
Fugaku, still unyielding, watched him with grim solemnity."You're digging your own grave."
The enemy snarled, staggering, but charged with the ferocity of a wounded animal. Each clash with Fugaku left him weaker, more broken. Until finally, after a brutal exchange, his knees buckled and he collapsed to the ground.
Itachi approached, exhausted, breath ragged. Frustration shone in his eyes, knowing he hadn't matched his father.
Fugaku placed a hand on his shoulder."You did well. You observed. That's worth more than rushing to die."
But at that moment, a dark glow erupted from the enemy's chest. The jonin grinned with bloodied teeth, his body trembling in agony."Uchiha… you won't take me alone…"
With one last effort, he lunged in a surprise strike, a kunai drenched in black chakra aimed straight at Fugaku's heart.
Time seemed to freeze.
Itachi's eyes flared like burning coals. He had already seen it coming: every microgesture, every muscle's tension, read by his Sharingan. His arm moved before the enemy's mind completed the attack.
A clean cut.
The Root ninja's throat opened, blood staining the ground. The kunai never reached Fugaku. The enemy's body collapsed lifelessly.
Fugaku looked at his son, surprised yet proud."…You were prepared."
Itachi, his Sharingan still glowing, swallowed hard, processing what he had done. His voice came low, firm, yet heavy with new weight."I wasn't going to let him touch you, father."
Rain began to fall softly over the field, extinguishing the remaining flames and washing away the blood. Fugaku straightened, his gaze stern, though his eyes now carried respect.
"Itachi… today you took another step toward what it truly means to be Uchiha."
Thus ended my first battle—and also the first life I took in this world.